Germany convicts Syrian as IS fighter, gives 7-year sentence

BERLIN – A German court has convicted a Syrian refugee on allegations he fought on the side of the Islamic State group in his country's civil war.

The regional court in Duesseldorf sentenced the man, identified only as Saleh A. for privacy reasons, to seven years in prison after finding him guilty on Wednesday of membership in foreign terrorist groups, manslaughter and other charges.

A., who is believed to be in his 30s, admitted during his trial that he killed a Syrian government sniper who had allegedly killed his brother.

The suspect surrendered to French police in 2016 and claimed to be part of an IS plot to carry out an attack in Duesseldorf. The court concluded no such plans existed, but counted his cooperation with German security services in his favor.